1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an air conditioner, and more particularly, to a window type air conditioner having upper and lower casings which are formed by injection molding and are coupled with each other.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Generally, as shown in FIG. 1, an air conditioner includes a front cover 10 on which a suction grill 11 and a discharge grill (not shown) are formed, a casing 20 on which a plurality of air holes 21 are formed, and a baseplate 30 which is disposed beneath the casing 20.
As shown in FIG. 1, such a window type air conditioner is mounted through a window (G) or a wall (W). Further, in the portion of the air conditioner which is exposed outside the wall (W), i.e., outside the building, a compressor, a condenser, and a cooling fan are installed, while an evaporator and a blowing fan are installed in the portion protruding inward of the wall (W), i.e., inside the building. All the above parts are mounted on the baseplate 30, and then the casing 20 and the front cover 10 are mounted on the baseplate 30.
Meanwhile, the conventional window type air conditioner constructed as above has drawbacks as follows: Since the elements for forming the appearance of the air conditioner, i.e., the casing 20 and the baseplate 30 are made of the metallic material, which is quite heavy and expensive, the manufacturing cost for the air conditioner increases, and also, the manufacturing and delivery processes become inefficient. Further, since certain parts of the casing 20 and the baseplate 30 are exposed to the outside, the air conditioner has a problem of being easily corroded by the outside environment.
In order to solve the above problem, as shown in FIG. 2, a window type air conditioner having an injection-molded casing has been suggested. In such an air conditioner, a casing 40 is comprised of a lower casing 41 and an upper casing 42. The front portion of the casing 40 is attached to a front cover 50 having both suction and discharge grills 51 and 52 on the front side thereof. The upper and lower casings 41 and 42 have a plurality of air holes 41a and 42a on the respective sides thereof. The upper and lower casings 41 and 42 are molded of materials such as synthetic resin, or the like, by injection. In such an air conditioner, since the casing 40 is made by the injection molding, the manufacturing cost decreases, and the assembly and delivery can be performed conveniently. Further, there is no risk of having any corrosion.
The above conventional air conditioner, however, has drawbacks as follows: In order to make the injection molding easier, sides of the upper and lower casings 41 and 42 are curved, respectively. More specifically, in order to easily detach the molding from the mold, the respective sides of the upper and lower casings 41 and 42 are curved. Accordingly, when such an air conditioner having curved sides is installed through the window, as shown in FIG. 3, there are gaps 62 formed between the casing 40 and a frame 61 disposed around the window for installation of the air conditioner. Such gaps 62 result in a deteriorated cooling efficiency of the air conditioner, since the outside and inside air flow therethrough. Further, the appearance of the air conditioner is deteriorated. Accordingly, when such a conventional air conditioner is installed, the gaps 62 should be sealed with a separate sealing member.
Further, since the upper and lower casings 41 and 42 are made of materials such as synthetic resins, or the like, the upper and lower casings 41 and 42 have a much lower strength.